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Absolutely the worst movie.

Absolutely Fantastic

Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

Blistering performances.

"Hooper" is a delightful tribute by star Burt Reynolds and director Hal Needham - both of whom began their careers as stuntmen - to those brave men and women who risk life and limb for the movies. It remains endearing and upbeat throughout, sometimes getting serious but never melodramatic. It's naturally jam packed with amazing stunt work, and quite a few explosions as well. The cast is completely engaging, and everything is played with a respectable amount of humour.Burt plays Sonny Hooper, an old pro stuntman who realizes that a new day is coming, and that a new breed is emerging: younger, tougher, more daring. A prime example is up and comer "Ski" (Jan-Michael Vincent), who comes to work on the same movie that Sonny is currently gaffing. It's Ski who encourages Sonny to try one of the riskiest car stunts ever filmed."Hooper" has just enough story to be involving, and one can't help but like these characters. Burt is charming, with an incredibly foxy Sally Field playing Gwen, the girlfriend who stands by him. Vincent is very likable, as are the supporting performers such as Brian Keith, John Marley, James Best, Adam West (in what is really a nothing role, as the actor for whom Sonny doubles), George Furth, Don 'Red' Barry, Robert Tessier, and Tara Buckman. Comedian Robert Klein is good as Roger Deal, the jerk director of the movie-within-the-movie, who cares not for going over budget or risking lives as long as he gets his shots.Burt has a great moment right at the end as he acknowledges us in the audience before providing us with an appropriate and satisfying punchline.Eight out of 10.

This is an easy going, light hearted comedy drama which Burt Reynolds effortlessly churned out in the 1970s. Nothing much to tax your brain and plenty of stunts to keep his fans happy. The film is loosely based on the experiences of director Hal Needham who used to be a stuntman himself and serves as a tribute to stunt-men everywhere.Reynolds is a veteran Hollywood stuntman who works hard and plays harder but is spurred on to do better when a rival emerges (Jan Michael Vincent) who is fitter, takes better care of himself and younger. The two become friends after a bar brawl but begin an escalating but friendly rivalry with the stunts becoming more and more spectacular and dangerous that climaxes in a rocket car stunt.Sally Field pops up as Reynold's girlfriend. There is a roster of stolid supporting actors from Adam West, Brian Keith, John Marley, Robert Klein.The film is easy going, charming and fun. The stunts keep the action moving. There is good chemistry between Vincent and Reynolds but its also easily forgettable like a lot of Reynold's output from that era.

This movie could have been better if there wasn't so much goofing off. I don't mean that goofing off is bad, but one gets the feeling watching this film that 'Hooper' isn't really a character study, i.e. that Reynolds isn't really playing a character, but that he's simply being himself and having fun on the set while the cameras happen to be rolling. This distracts from the intensity of the film's core, about a aging guy who is doing one of the most dangerous jobs in the world - a Hollywood stuntman - trying to compete with a hotshot newcomer played by Jan Michael Vincent, who is very cool in this movie. Vincent is realistic and mellow and the connection between his character 'Ski' and Burt's 'Hooper' is far better than the cornball routines between Reynolds and his pal played by James Best (from 'Dukes of Hazard' fame). Best is just another Dom Deluise, or Jim Nabors, or whichever goofy Burt sidekick you can recall. And it's kind of sad because Best is an acting teacher guru and could have done a lot better. When Reynolds and Best do Roy Rogers and Jimmy Stewart impressions I felt like shooting my television set. There is, of course, a bar fight (not many seventies Reynold's films lacked one) and the dialog before and after the fight is as corny and lame as you can get. The jokes between Brain Keith and Reynolds (who plays the older stuntman who Reynolds replaced as the kingpin as now Vincent threatens Reynolds) are lame but not as bad as Reynolds and Best's joking around. I don't know, I just would have liked less "Hey we're having so much fun on the set" and more of an intense character study, which does, in between the jests, shine through on occasion. Robert Klein plays a lofty Hollywood director, and isn't too bad as an actor in this, but he's made into a villain (along with a kiss-up production assistant) and that's kind of lame because in real life, it's not so black and white. I don't like it when a character is made to be instantly unlikeable because he goes against the wishes of the main character, it's just so made-for-TV or something.

Seems like people either loved or hated old Burt back in the 70s. He was huge. Funny thing about his career was the fact that his early B movies in the 60s were serious little numbers on the whole and he never seemed to get anywhere. Then in a supporting role in Borman's "Deliverance" he exploded on the movie scene like an atomic bomb. Even his longtime fans from his "Gunsmoke" days like myself were stunned. Then, again he seemed to be stalling. Then he did something most of us where not expecting...he went pedal-to-the-metal comedy. Burt Reynolds was funny...very funny. His arrogant demeanor evenly tempered by a twinkle in his eye, he could charm a cornered rattlesnake. His fans were in on the joke the whole time while the others just plain hated him. It was their loss. He would go back to the serious movies after his tenure as the top box office dog, and he would finally get the much deserved respect from the Hollywood Mafia he had earned, but Burt at his best for most of us is still Burt being funny. Hooper, for me is still his best film while at the top. It was his poke in the eye at Hollywood and the crap so many actors have to endure. In a nutshell- Director is an ass, doesn't care about anyone but himself and his movie. Producer has no spine. Writer is treated like hired hand. Certain actors are treated like royalty while the stunt doubles do all the real (and dangerous) work the actors will no doubt get rave reviews for. Hooper's the best because like all the great stuntmen and daredevil types, he's a thrill junkie. Everyone knows he can't turn down a challenge to attempt the next bigger and better stunt. But he's getting old and the pounding his body has taken is catching up. His girlfriend wants him to stop and raise horses with her. Her father was a stuntman and when Hooper was a snot nosed wannabe he hounded the older man until he took him in and became his mentor. Now a new snot nosed wannabe is hounding Hooper. He sees what he's becoming in the old man, now just another Hollywood relic, and he sees what he once was in the new kid, the promise of becoming the best. Brian Kieth as the old man is outstanding. He was an underrated actor his entire career. Jan Michael Vincent is almost as good as the new kid hot on the heels of Hooper's King-of-the-Stuntmen Crown. As with all these Reynolds' comedies in-jokes and silliness abound, and action is top notch. Unlike the others this film also has good dramatic moments. Reynolds was never a great actor, but by the time this film was made he had become a damn good one. Supported by Sally Field and Brian Kieth and Robert Klien and many others, it's one of the best films he has made so far. Ex-NFL great Terry Bradshaw and several other off the wall cameos are peppered throughout. The twinkle never goes away and at the end Burt looks us straight in the eye and throws the final punch just for us. It may not be great "film" but it's great "Movie" making, just plain popcorn munching fun. If you like Burt, this could be the ultimate Burt Reynolds movie. If you like movies about Hollywood or just like to laugh or thrill to fantastic stuntwork this movie is a must.